Cloth cutting and assembling machine



W. D. BUTZ.

CLOTH CUTTING AND ASSEMBLING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 11, I918- RENEWED MAY 29. 1920.

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CLOTH CUTTI NG AND ASSEMBLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION HLED SEPTQII, 191B- RENEWED MAY 29.1920.

1,356,262. Patented Oct. 19, 1920.

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CLOTH CUTTING AND ASSEMBLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. n, 1918. RENEWED MAY 29.1920.

1.356,262. Patented Oct. 19, 1920.

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WALTER D. BUT]; v

UNITED STATES,

PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER D. BUTZ, OF NORRISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

CLOTH CUTTING AND ASSEMBLING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Oct, 19,1920,

Application filed September 11, 1918,'Seria1 No. 253,528. Renewed May 29, 1920. Serial No. 885,390.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER D. BUTZ, a citizen of the United States, residing in Norristown, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Cloth Cutting and Assembling Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple and effective machine, operable eitherby hand or power, for cutting pieces of any desired size from a length of web, and assembling said cut pieces so that they can be readily removed when such removal is desired, a special object being to prevent either hand of the operator from coming into range of the blades of the shears dur-. ing the cutting operation.

This object I attain in the manner hereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a transverse section of a handoperated machine, showing the cutting shears in the open position and omitting the means for assembling the cut pieces;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the shear blades closed;

Fig. 3 is a transverse section illustrating the means employed for assembling the cut pieces, but omitting the cutting devices;

Fig. 4: is horizontal section on-the line -14, Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section on the line 5-5, Figs. 2 and 3;

Fig. 6 is a face view of a certain part of the assembling mechanism;

Fig. 7 is a View similar to Fig.3, but showing power-actuated mechanism for drawing the web forward in position to be out, and 1 Fig. 8 is a side elevation of certain parts of the mechanism shown in Fig. 7 and Fig. 9 is a top view showing the relation to each other of the cutting and assembling devices shown in Figs. 1 to 6.

The fixed structure of the machine comprises a rectangular frame 1 suitably mounted above the floor of the room and having depending longitudinal beams 2 at front and rear. Within this, frame is fixedly mounted a lower -shear blade 3 with which cooperates a movable upper shear blade 1, pivotally mounted at 5 and having a rearwardly extending arm 6, which is connected by a link 7 to an arm 8, the latter being carried by a shaft 9, mounted in suit able hangers l0 and having another-arm 11,

connected, by a link 12, to an arm 13 on a shaft 1-1, to which is attached an arm 15 having an upwardly projecting rod 16 provided with an operating handle 17 in front of the frame 1. I

A spring 18, extending from the arm 11. to the rear beam 2, tends to constantly maintain the parts in the position shown in Fig. 1, that is to say, with the upper blade of the shears elevated and with the handle 17 raised above the top of the frame, as shown in said figure. When, however, this handle is depressed to the position shown inFig. 2, the upper blade 4 of the shears will be caused to descend and will The assembling of the cut pieces, as

shownin Fig. 3, is effected by the following means: I

A longitudinal shaft 20 above the frame 1 has mounted upon it a web-supporting plate 21, over which the web isdrawn longitudinally from a roll, pile, or other web supply at one end of the frame 1, the web being drawn between the shear blades 3and f1 when the latter are separated, as shown 1n'F1g. 1. Upon a rail 22 at the front edge of the web-supporting plate 21, is mounted a longitudinally adjustable slide 23, which carries a finger 24L projecting inwardly above the web support, such finger serving as a gage for the length of web to be drawn forwardly between the shear blades and over the web support, thus determining the length of the pieces which are successivelv cut from the body of the web. The Web support has a rearward'ly proecting arm 25 which carries aweight'26 for counter-balancing the weight of the web support and of the cut web resting upon the same.

The shaft 20 has an arm 27 which is connected by a link 28 to one arm of a lever 29, the latter being pivoted, at 30, upon a hanger depending from the rear beam 2 of the frame, another arm of said lever being connected by a link31to an arm 32 which is mounted soas tobe free to turn onthe shaft 14 before referred to.

Said shaft 14 has fixedly mounted thereon an arm 34 and upon the latter is'pivote'd a spring catch 35 which, when the arm 34 swings forwardly, engages with the arm 32,

a tail upon the catch, when the arm 3% swings rearwardly, engaging a pin 36, depending from the frame 1 and being moved thereby so as to disengage the hooked end of the catch from the arm 32, whereupon the free end of the latter will be drawn for- V wardly by means of a spring 37, which is connected at one end to the forward beam 2 and at the other end to the said free end of the arm 32. When, therefore, tne handle 17 is depressedfrom the position shown in Fig. 1 to that shown in Fig. 2 the shears out from the web that portion of the same which has been drawn forwardly between said shears, the same movement of the shaft 1 1 also causing forward swing of the arm 34 to such an extent as to cause its catch 35 to engage the arm 32. When the handle 17 is caused to rise by the pull of the spring 18, said arm 32 will be drawn r'earwardly and thereby, through the medium of the connecting rods 31 and 28, lever 29, and arm 27, will cause the web support 21 to swing upwardly to the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3, thus impaling the cut stria upon pins 10 which project from a bar 11 mounted upon standards 42 at the opposite ends of the frame 1, the web support being suitably perforated for the reception of th ese pins.

As soon as the catch 35 is released'from engagement with the arm 32; by contact of the tail of said catch withthe pin 36. the spring 37 restores t 1e arm 32 to the position shown in Fig. 3, and thus causes the web support 21 to drop from the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3 to that shown by full lines in said figure, another length of web being then drawn between the open shear blades and over the web support, and these operations being repeated until the desired number of cut pieces have been suspended from the impaling pins 41, whereupon said pieces can be removed from said pins by grasping their upper edges, the bar n being provided with recesses 13 for permitting such grasp of said upper edges.

Downward movement of the handle 1'7 causes forward movement of the shaft 1% and through the medium of the transmitting device, as shown in Figs. 1 and'2, causes the closing of the shear blades and the cutting of the web which has been drawn between them. During this time the supporting table 21 occupies the horizontal position shown by full lines in Fig. 3, the arm on the shaft 14:, during the downward movement of the handle 17, swinging forwardly so as to cause its catch 35 to engage with the arm 32 on the shaft 14:.

During the rise of the handle 17 the arm 34 swings rearwardly and the catch 35 being now engaged with the arm 32 causes like rearward swing of said arm 32 and swinging movement of the shaft 20 so as to carry have been devised the web support 21 to the upright position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3, thereby impaling the out pieces of web upon the pins 40, the web support 21 then swinging clownwardly because of the action of the spring 37 upon the arm 32.

The web to be cut may, in some cases, consist of-a flattened tube, or may have upper and lower plies, and in such case the web support 21 may be composed of transparent material and the frame 1 may be provided with supports for a reflector 141 below the same, hence any holes or other defects in either ply of the web are visible to the attendant at the front of the machine, defects in the upper ply being directly visible and defects in the lower ply being shown upon the reflector 44L. 7 The web can therefore be so adjusted upon the support 21 at each cutting as to eliminate the defective portions from the subsequently cut and assembled pieces.

I am aware that metal cutting machines in which operating mechanism for the cutting shears has been actuated by a foot treadle, butparts to be operated by foot treadles are objectionable in machines which, like that of the present invention, are attended by female operatives. Apart from this, however, it is important that both hands of the attendant be occupied during the cutting operation otherwise accidents are likely to happen because of an idle hand being inadvertently carried into range of the shears and being cut thereby, hence the employment in my machine of a manually controlled handle for the purpose of operating the shears so that both hands of the operator are fully occupied, one hand in holding the web in proper position upon the web support 21 and the other in manipulating the handle 17, whereby there is no danger of either hand getting in the way of the shear blades during the cutting'operation, an accident which might happen if either. hand was free at that time.

In Figs. 7 and 8 I have shown one instance of a power-actuated machine, the

shaft from which power is derived being indicated at 50 and being provided with a suitable cam 51 for actuating an arm 51 free to turn on the shaft 1-1, whereby the cutting and assembling devices are operated. At front andrear of the frame 1 are poweractuated belts 52, pins 53 on these belts engaging slots 541 in the opposite end portions of a carriage 55 which extends transversely across the frame 1 from front to rear, as shown in Fig. 7, the result being that said carriage is caused to traverse back and forth, longitudinally.

Mounted in suitable bearings on the carriage 55 is a shaft 56, and projecting from this shaft are a number of Web gripping at this time, have been thrust forwardly between the open shear blades, to descend and clamp between them and the fingers 58 the edge of the main web adjacent to the shears, the web being elevated above the frame 1 by a plate 61 which has, in its forward edge, recesses in line with the fingers 57 so as to permit said fingers to co-act with the fingers 58 to secure a firm hold upon the web.

Nhen the arm 59 was moved by the pin 60 so as to close the fingers 57 upon the web, the end of said arm was engaged by a spring catch 62 on the carriage 55, and hence the fingers 57 and 58 retained their hold upon the web when the carriage moved in the direction of the arrow Fig. 8, and drew the web between the shear blades and out over the web support 21. Before the carriage reaches the limit of its movement in this direction, however, a tail upon the catch 62 is struck by a pin 63 whose carrier is slidably mounted upon a rod 64 supported on the front beam 2 of the frame and said catch is moved so as to release the arm 59, thereby permitting the fingers 57 to open and release their hold upon the web, the latter being then cut by the shears and the cut pieces lifted by the web support 21 and impaled upon the pins 41.

By proper longitudinal adjustment of the pin 63 on the rod 64 the catch 62 can be operated at any desired point in the travel of the endless belt 52 and any desired length of web can thus be drawn between the shears before the latter operate to sever the web, the pin carrier being secured by a suitable set screw in proper position after adjustment upon the rod 64.

By slotting the beam 2 as shown, for instance, by dotted lines in Fig. 8, the shaft carrying the outer belt pulleys can be adjusted from and toward the opposite shaft so as to permit of the employment of belts 52, having a length of travel corresponding with the length of cut web.

I claim:

1. The combination, in a web cutting device, of shear blades disposed transversely of the web tobe cut, an operating handle, and mechanism for transmitting the inovements of said handle to the movable blade of the shears, said handle being so located that it is within reach of one hand of the operator while the other hand is holding the web which has been drawn forward between the blades of the shears.

2. The combination, in a web cutting device, of a pair of shear blades through which the web is drawn, the movable blade of said shears having a rearwardly projecting arm, an operating handle therefor, and mechanism for transmitting the movements of said handle to the rearwardly projecting arm of the movable blade of the shears, said handle being so located that it is within reach of one hand of the operator while the other hand is holding the web which has been drawn forward between the blades of the shears.

3. The combination, in a web cutting device, of the cutting mechanism, a plate for supporting the cut pieces, means for swinging said plate to an upright position, a bar having impaling pins for engaging the pieces thus swung upwardly, said bar having therein recesses to permit grasping of said out pieces.

4'. The combination, in a web cutting device, of cutting mechanism, a web support of transparent material over which the web can be drawn past said cutting mechanism, and a reflector below said support.

5. The combination, in a web cutting device, of a swinging web support, and operating mechanism therefor having, as elements, a shaft with loose and fixed arms thereon, the fixed arm having mounted thereon a catch for engaging the other arm when the first arm is swung in one direction, and means for releasing the catch when the fixed arm swings in the opposite direction.

6. The combination, in a web cutting device, of cutting shears, mechanism, including a rock shaft, for operating the same, a swinging web support, and operating mechanism therefor driven from the same rock shaft as the shear blades.

7. The combination, in a web cutting device, of cutting mechanism, web gripping fingers, a carriage upon which the same aremounted, means for moving said carriage from and toward the cutting mechanism, a catch for retaining the gripping fingers in the closed position, and means for releasing said catch, said means being adjustable from and toward the cutting mechanism.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

' WALTER D. BUTZ. 

